Tag Archives: Internet

The Internet provides a wealth of information at your fingertips. It’s also unfortunately a huge security risk because of the many threats that lurk on the WWW, including unscrupulous hackers and data thieves who are just waiting for you to make one wrong swipe. Ease your fears and deal with these threats by getting VPN.

VPN, which stands for Virtual Private Network, lets you surf websites and access data on the internet without compromising your information since the outgoing data is encrypted. The VPN Unlimited Premium Plan provides you with this and more: secure WiFi connection, prevention of data interception, and the option to choose the server from any country you want. At $19 for three years, it’s a steal.

Take a selfie every day? Then this mirror is for you. It’s aptly called the S.E.L.F.I.E.–which is the abbreviation of the “Self Enhancing Live Feed Image Engine.” It seems kind of forced, but at least they made it work with the acronym. Staying true to its name, the Selfie mirror takes your selfies without your outstretched arm or that monopod showing up in the frame.

It’s powered by a Mac Mini computer hidden on the other side. The mirror is equipped with a webcam and LED lights that are connected to an Arduino chip, which functions as your timer. All you have to do is say cheese, and voila! The mirror takes a snapshot and posts it to your social media profile in a snap.

It’s official: ninjas have now been unleashed on the world wide web. Ninja domain names, that is, as service providers are starting to take pre-orders from people who want to reserve a domain name that ends in .NINJA (capitalized for emphasis, because, ninja.) You might recall that ICANN took in applications from individuals, groups, and companies with deep pockets who wanted to create their very own top level domain name. We say deep pockets because the entire process costs about $185,000.

Among those accepted are .ninja, .rich, .buzz, .coffee, .rodeo, .toys, and .sexy, among others. You can check out the entire list here.

Some people overuse the word “literally” while others erroneously use it when they mean to say “figuratively.” Whether you’re bored or simply have something against the adjective, then Literally can help you out. It’s a browser plug-in that swaps out “literally” with “figuratively,” so it literally gives blogs, posts, and other written tomes a different meaning.

The tagline boasts of a “better browsing experience,” and while I’m so convinced on that claim, I am sure it’ll make some web pages more interesting. In case you’re wondering why the plug-in site features Parks and Recreation actor Rob Lowe, that’s because his character on the show uses the word “literally” a lot.

These days, hearing about people who had their accounts hacked or their personal information stolen is becoming a more common occurrence. Malware is on the rise, and hackers out there are taking advantage of users who are careless when it comes to online security. This is partly why many people resisted the concept of the cloud when it first came to be. Ironically, many of those people are probably already using the cloud, even though they don’t realize it.

Lots of online services, from email storage and notes, apps, file storage and archiving, are already cloud-based. With so many options, there will come a time when you’ll forget where you stored a specific file or message. You could search all of your apps and accounts manually–which is infinitely harder when you’re on your mobile–or you could just fire up CloudMagic, a cloud-searching app which we covered earlier.

Worried about all the NSA spying? You’re a law abiding citizen but are incensed that your browsing habits are being recorded and analyzed, in possible violation of your constitutional rights? There are ways to make that tracking more difficult (though, fair warning, possibly not impossible) with the DIY project pictured above. It’s called the Onion Pi, uses a Raspberry Pi, a USB WiFi adapter and access to TOR to give you access to potentially anonymous surfing.

Browse anonymously anywhere you go with the Onion Pi Tor proxy. This is fun weekend project that uses a Raspberry Pi, a USB WiFi adapter and Ethernet cable to create a small, low-power and portable privacy Pi. Using it is easy-as-pie. First, plug the Ethernet cable into any Internet provider in your home, work, hotel or conference/event. Next, power up the Pi with the micro USB cable to your laptop or to the wall adapter. The Pi will boot up and create a new secure wireless access point called Onion Pi. Connecting to that access point will automatically route any web browsing from your computer through the anonymizing Tor network.

The link below brings you to a page that sells a pack with all the parts you need for the project. It’s $95, and a portion of the proceeds go to the Tor foundation. But yeah, you still have to put it together yourself.

It’s easy to see Google Fiber’s burgeoning gigabit Internet service as a harbinger of a new era in the US. Certainly, with average speeds of 7.2Mbps, 1Gbps is in a completely different league. But Japan doesn’t waste any time in reminding the world just how much better they have it. Nuro, a service backed by Sony, has announced the availability of 2Gbps Internet down, with 1Gbps up. This would allow you to download pictures of cats in a fraction of time so small there’s likely no word for it.

And how much are the Japanese to pay for this otherworldly service? A price so high only the rich can afford? You know it’s cheap: “Nuro charges ¥4,980 (US$51) a month on a two-year contract, but there’s a steep ¥52,500 (US$535) installation fee that is currently waived for those who apply online.”

Want to waste a few minutes? Head on over to PointerPointer and move your mouse cursor around. When it stops, the website searches its database to find a picture of someone pointing exactly where your cursor is. It’s pretty cool. And then it’s not and you move on. That’s Internet ADD; it’s normal.

OhGizmo! is a frequently updated blog that focuses on covering items that will appeal to a very specific and often very passionate audience: the geek. Aside from the fare of innovative consumer electronic products, the reader can expect to find news about geek culture, absurd inventions, awe inspiring technology, and an ever growing assortment of articles that we like to think fit within our view of what we’re calling the Geek Lifestyle.